Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[cubby]

Meanwhile in Germany... a senator in the capital resigned for pocketing €8100 she shouldn't have.

Lol, at least law and order exists somewhere. The GOP would have made that Senator the Majority Whip.

[Paranoid Android]

The Trump Crime Family's banker, from Deutsche Bank, is being investigated...by who you ask? Why, Deutsche Bank itself - which speaks volumes to how bad that must be, if a Bank known for laundering Russian money is investigating you...whoops. Apparently she bought a condo from Jared back in 2013.

Hope you don't get food poisoning!

Meh. The self-internal investigation has me skeptic. I mean is Deutsche Bank that motivated to find dirt on themselves? Not too familiar with Deutsche Bank but I remember the articles seem to be they are pretty shady in handling numerous criminal activities around the world. We will see. Fingers crossed.

[Gorsameth]

Congress is the one supposed to keep the President in check, but hey we know how that turned out.

A lot of checks and balances in Democraties only exist because people chose to abide by them, Trump and the Republicans are showing what happens when you stop pretending to follow the rules.

At the point the only hope is that Biden doesn't do the usual 'tradition' of not going after the previous administration but instead pursues it all. There is enough stuff there for decades of prosecutions, and not just Trump and his close surroundings but across the entire administration.

[cubby]

Congress is the one supposed to keep the President in check, but hey we know how that turned out.

A lot of checks and balances in Democraties only exist because people chose to abide by them, Trump and the Republicans are showing what happens when you stop pretending to follow the rules.

At the point the only hope is that Biden doesn't do the usual 'tradition' of not going after the previous administration but instead pursues it all. There is enough stuff there for decades of prosecutions, and not just Trump and his close surroundings but across the entire administration.

Agreed on both accounts. And if Biden does win, and because Warren is locked out of a Cabinet post because of her Senate seat going to the GOP if she resigns, I think she would be a terrific Chairperson for the Truth and Reconciliation Committee.

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Meh. The self-internal investigation has me skeptic. I mean is Deutsche Bank that motivated to find dirt on themselves? Not too familiar with Deutsche Bank but I remember the articles seem to be they are pretty shady in handling numerous criminal activities around the world. We will see. Fingers crossed.

Oh, no doubt nothing will come of it, even if I did get my hopes up. Just the fact that even their fucking banker is corrupt shows how deep into the crime syndicate the Trump Crime Family delves.

Also, just as a shits-and-giggles thought, if Biden wins, and the DOJ returns to it's proper function, they can freeze accounts they feel are linked to criminal activity. Can you imagine if AG Harris froze the Trump Crime Family's accounts, "in anticipation of further investigation"?

[Paranoid Android]

Agreed on both accounts. And if Biden does win, and because Warren is locked out of a Cabinet post because of her Senate seat going to the GOP if she resigns, I think she would be a terrific Chairperson for the Truth and Reconciliation Committee.

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Oh, no doubt nothing will come of it, even if I did get my hopes up. Just the fact that even their fucking banker is corrupt shows how deep into the crime syndicate the Trump Crime Family delves.

Also, just as a shits-and-giggles thought, if Biden wins, and the DOJ returns to it's proper function, they can freeze accounts they feel are linked to criminal activity. Can you imagine if AG Harris froze the Trump Crime Family's accounts, "in anticipation of further investigation"?

Truly amazing how the wealthy and even pieces of crap rich people get away with it. We all know the story, Trump is not self made. A BIG FAT failure with his dad's money. So he likely turned to criminal activity to further his wealth. Even some possible Holy Crap stuff of money laundering for international crime organizations.
Yeah, lets hope.

[cubby]

Truly amazing what the wealthy and even pieces of crap rich people get away with it. We all know the story, Trump is not self made. A BIG FAT failure with his dad's money. So he likely turned to criminal activity to further his wealth. Even some possible Holy Crap stuff of money laundering for international crime organizations.
Yeah, lets hope.

Only in my wildest dreams do I see Trump actually sitting in jail for his crimes. More than likely, even with the best case scenario, he will be under house arrest. What I do see in my more moderate dreams, is his children going to jail for their involvement. Jared and his family, too.

Because yeah, even as short a trail as:

1. Trump can't get any loans with U.S. banks.
2. Deutsche magically approves $2B in loans.
3. Russians launder billions through Deutsche Bank.

It's very easy to conclude that Trump has been laundering money through real estate for decades. It's why his tax records are so protected, and STILL not released.

[Felya]

Truly amazing how the wealthy and even pieces of crap rich people get away with it. We all know the story, Trump is not self made. A BIG FAT failure with his dad's money. So he likely turned to criminal activity to further his wealth. Even some possible Holy Crap stuff of money laundering for international crime organizations.
Yeah, lets hope.

It’s why I go off on people talking about Trump supporting the working class. I’ve had several Trump supporters literally claim that ultra rich support democrats, while just rich like Trump, support republicans. They are splitting 1%, because Trump being a NYC oligarch, is kinda inconvenient.

[Paranoid Android]

President Trump: "Absentee [voting] is great. It works. Like in Florida, they'll do absentee. It really works. But universal mail-in ballots is going to be a great embarrassment to our country."

Just the dumbest S.O.B. alive.

[Rasulis]

White House Yanks Nominee Who Bucked Social-Media Plan

The White House withdrew the nomination of Michael O’Rielly, who has expressed doubt about President Donald Trump’s plan to reduce legal protections for social media, for another term at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.

The White House announced the action Monday in a notice sent to the Senate, which confirms nominees. The notice didn’t provide a reason for the decision.

The FCC has a 3-2 Republican majority, and the vote of O’Rielly, a Republican, could be needed to advance Trump’s initiative. Both of the agency’s Democrats have expressed opposition to the president’s drive to narrow the shield against legal liability for companies such as Twitter Inc. and Facebook Inc.

In an interview in June on C-Span, O’Rielly said he wasn’t sure the FCC had authority to carry out Trump’s plan.

“The First Amendment protects us from limits on speech imposed by the government -- not private actors,” O’Rielly said in a July 29 speech.

O’Rielly’s nomination cleared the Senate Commerce Committee last month. He has been a member of the FCC since 2013, after working as a congressional staff member.

He should have waited until he received his appointment before talking against Trump. On the other hand, he probably was not expecting that Trump wanted him to be a lap dog.

[cubby]

White House Yanks Nominee Who Bucked Social-Media Plan



He should have waited until he received his appointment before talking against Trump. On the other hand, he probably was not expecting that Trump wanted him to be a lap dog.

He really should have - those appointments are golden once confirmed. Not sure what he was thinking....

[Ursus]

https://twitter.com/BELLSAINTmusic/s...46735454187524

Louie Gohmert's daughter put out a statement on Twitter saying that wearing a mask shouldn't be political and imploring people to listen to medical experts over a President who has no remorse for leading people to their deaths. At least someone in the family has brains.

[Templar 331]

He really should have - those appointments are golden once confirmed. Not sure what he was thinking....

He was thinking like all the rest of Trump's ex-staffers/employees. He thought he wasn't being used as a rung in Trump's ladder.

[Xyonai]

Trump threatening to issue an EO against mail-in voting. Claiming he has the authority to do so, despite voting being - as explicitly stated in the constitution - something the states decide.

Queue the usual 'Lol so much for being the party of states rights!' lambasting, as if the right even cares to keep that facade going anymore.

[Benggaul]

48,622 new cases, down about 12-13k from the previous Monday--however testing centers in Florida were closed yesterday so those numbers (which would normally be reported today) will be passed down the line to tomorrow or beyond. Or just fucking paved over and forgotten. Fuck Florida.

Texas: 6,997 new cases; 114 deaths
California: 6,344 new cases; 109 deaths
Florida: 4,752 new cases; 73 deaths
Georgia: 2,258 new cases; 2 deaths
Missouri: 1,593 new cases; 1 death
Virginia: 1,324 new cases; no deaths reported
Illinois: 1,298 new cases; 9 deaths
Alabama: 1,217 new cases; 6 deaths
South Carolina: 1,163 new cases; 16 deaths
Louisiana: 1,099 new cases; 17 deaths
Washington: 1,085 new cases; 11 deaths
Arizona: 1,030 new cases; 14 deaths
Tennessee: 1,009 new cases; 19 deaths

Again, not much to say given it's a lull day, but it does still seem like cases in the initial states of this outbreak are declining but cases in secondary/tertiary states (like Missouri and Virginia) are still steadily increasing. We may be out of the woods in terms of phenomenally bad totals of new cases, but we're still going to be in "should not happen in a supposed first world country" range for a while.

Deaths were slightly lower than last Monday but I suspect part of that had to do with more underreporting than normal in places like Florida. 568, taking the total to 158,929. Depending on the amount of corrections tomorrow the US could pass 160k. I'm pretty positive it'll be over 170k before August is finished--and probably higher than that.

Stay safe, folks.

[Breccia]

What kind of repercussions does he have for ignoring them?

Trump lives, and does most of his business, in New York State. It is they who are going after his corrupt, illegal affairs.

Trump ignoring this would be extremely risky. One, NY's tax people could very easily just hand them over to state prosecutors if Trump refuses, point to SCOTUS and say "Hey man, we're just following the rules". Two, NYS could leak them maliciously on purpose and then pardon whoever did it -- just like Trump is planning to do with his own people, so he can't complain. Three, they could start dropping subpoenas on his employees, like, all of them, demanding the documents they asked for. They could do this, shrug, point at SCOTUS and say 'Hey man, we're just following the rules". Four, they could do any/all of this around mid-October when Trump can't recover.

While any/all of the above might be unethical, NYState could do what Trump is doing -- just do whatever they want, and wait for the courts to reverse it. Problem for Trump is, like Bolton's book and Trump's book, once the information is out, it's out. And Trump is hiding his taxes for a reason. If he hides them long enough to get re-elected, it no longer matters what they say. But the opposite is true -- if Trump's businesses are all raided and NYPD/FBI carry out hundreds of boxes and dozens of handcuffed witnesses in mid-Oct, it doesn't matter if all charges are dropped in mid-Nov.

I don't know if NYState will do this. Granted, it sounds like a bad precedent to set, but what other politican runs so many businesses with so many immoral, unethical, illegal, fraudulent dealings? Anyone who argues slippery slope here has an ironically uphill battle.

"Oh yeah? Well what if next time, Texas raids a Democrat's businesses with a legal warrant and find out he's a thief?"
"...good?"

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2. Deutsche magically approves $2B in loans.

This is a minor and probably unrelated issue, but, Deutche Bank is investigating one of their own who happened to do work for Trump and Kushner for years.

It will probably amount to coincidence -- Deutsche Bank is filled with criminals. But Deutsche Bank knows they are under permanent ongoing investigation for their admitted work laundering Russian money. If they have something of value to trade, they'll do it. And yes, NYState has collected settlements from them directly before -- it doesn't have to be a federal case.

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Trump threatening to issue an EO against mail-in voting.

Literally minutes later.

Nevada's governor signed a bill ensuring that every registered voter in the state would receive a mail-in ballot ahead of November's election despite threats of legal action from Trump

Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) said that the bill would ensure "that we’d do all we can to allow Nevadans to safely cast a ballot in the upcoming November election."

"This bill will help prevent Nevadans from experiencing the long lines at polling locations they faced during the Primary election, which will protect their safety, safeguard their right to make their voices heard, and help reduce the spread of COVID-19," the governor tweeted.

"Nevada is widely recognized as being a leader in election administration, and this bill will enable election officials to continue to support the safest, most accessible election possible under these unprecedented circumstances," Sisolak continued, adding: "I am confident that Secretary of State Cegavske, in coordination with local clerks and registrars, will run a safe, fair and accessible election this November."

See also: "Fuck you fatty".

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We are but two weeks away from this famous statement's four-year anniversary.

“What do you have to lose?” Trump asked repeatedly in the suburban Lansing venue. “You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58 percent of your youth is unemployed. What the hell do you have to lose?”

Now I have another point I'll be making shortly, but first, I'll issue yet another 24-hour challenge. Any Trump supporter is free to reply. Trump was speaking to African-American voters in the Flint/Detroit area.
1) Has the rate of poverty gone up, or down, for these voters since 2016?
2) Has the quality of schooling -- yes, I refer to the school year about to start -- gone up, or down, for these voters and their children since 2016?
3) Do more, or fewer, of these voters have jobs? (this is an easy one)

As always, failure to answer in 24 hours means I get to answer for you, and also, you admit you're a coward for refusing to answer.

But now my point: this happened.



Yes. Trump is now asking his own campaign email list -- presumably his most ardent supporters -- what do they have to lose.

I give Trump zero credit for recommending mask use. He's five months late. He's bringing condoms to the baby shower. Instead, we get proof of him begging his supporters for help, because he knows they're not wearing a mask, more so than the country as a whole or he'd have addressed everyone, and not just his donor list.

Actually, I suppose I missed a press briefing or similar announcement where Trump personally and directly said "wear a mask". If I did, I'd like to see that so I know if I need to apologize or not.

But I don't believe he did. I believe he made a colossal fucking mistake and encouraged actions that cost a hundred thousand lives, I believe he knows this, I believe he's desperate to change the narrative, I believe he knows he can't do that anymore -- the American people are the only ones who can, and I believe he knows it's largely his own supporters who are making things worse, as @Benggaul points out day after day. In fact, I wonder how many of those Trump campaign emails arrived in the inbox of someone too sick to open it, or dead?

[Breccia]

So Trump was asked point-blank if he agreed with his own Dr. Birx -- yes, the doctor he attacked today -- about the virus being widespread.

Well, I think we’re doing very well, and I think that we have done as well as any nation.

I think we’re doing very well. I told Dr. Birx I think we’re doing very well. She was in my office a little while ago. She’s a person I have a lot of respect for. I think Nancy Pelosi has treated her very badly — very, very badly. Very nasty.

"But he didn't answer the question."

Indeed. He was asked again, and flat-out ignored the question.

In a completely unrelated issue, the St. Louis Cardinals all have coronavirus.

"That's actually pretty related."

Okay, well, how about the 33,000 laptops Alabama ordered for their schoolchildren to engage in distance learning?

"Oh, that's good news! Alabama schools start really early, like August 17 or something. This will help dramatically."

Yeah, eventually.

"...what?"

Yeah, they're stuck in customs. Possibly until October. They've tried to get some replacement new and used ones, but only have like 9,000 of those.

"Alabama ordered them from China, didn't they?"

Yes.

In actually unrelated news this time, Trump has said that the US should get a share of the TikTok sale price.

"On what grounds?"

Because he says so.

I did say that if you buy it, whatever the price is that goes to whoever owns it, because I guess it’s China essentially … I said a very substantial portion of that price is going to have to come into the Treasury of the United States because we’re making it possible for this deal to happen

"I don't think that's how selling things works. Does the US get a portion of any sale it hasn't explicitly made illegal?"

Not to my knowledge, no. I suppose Trump could be suggesting the sale be subject to income tax, but Trump doesn't pay income taxes, so it comes off as hypocritical.

"But Trump does pay ta--"

Prove it.

[cubby]

Trump threatening to issue an EO against mail-in voting. Claiming he has the authority to do so, despite voting being - as explicitly stated in the constitution - something the states decide.

Queue the usual 'Lol so much for being the party of states rights!' lambasting, as if the right even cares to keep that facade going anymore.

It's horrific what he's doing to this country, but that specific EO will last about as long as it takes for Roberts to reach over and quash it. He will more than likely actively get it to SCOTUS review immediately, and then shove it right up Trump's ass. And that decision will be 9-0.

Still just awful Trump, das fuhrer, is doing this to the country. He's obviously terrified of what post-Resident life will be like for him. And his idiot fan base is following him right over the cliff.

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Trump lives, and does most of his business, in New York State. It is they who are going after his corrupt, illegal affairs.

Trump ignoring this would be extremely risky. One, NY's tax people could very easily just hand them over to state prosecutors if Trump refuses, point to SCOTUS and say "Hey man, we're just following the rules". Two, NYS could leak them maliciously on purpose and then pardon whoever did it -- just like Trump is planning to do with his own people, so he can't complain. Three, they could start dropping subpoenas on his employees, like, all of them, demanding the documents they asked for. They could do this, shrug, point at SCOTUS and say 'Hey man, we're just following the rules". Four, they could do any/all of this around mid-October when Trump can't recover.

While any/all of the above might be unethical, NYState could do what Trump is doing -- just do whatever they want, and wait for the courts to reverse it. Problem for Trump is, like Bolton's book and Trump's book, once the information is out, it's out. And Trump is hiding his taxes for a reason. If he hides them long enough to get re-elected, it no longer matters what they say. But the opposite is true -- if Trump's businesses are all raided and NYPD/FBI carry out hundreds of boxes and dozens of handcuffed witnesses in mid-Oct, it doesn't matter if all charges are dropped in mid-Nov.

I don't know if NYState will do this. Granted, it sounds like a bad precedent to set, but what other politican runs so many businesses with so many immoral, unethical, illegal, fraudulent dealings? Anyone who argues slippery slope here has an ironically uphill battle.

"Oh yeah? Well what if next time, Texas raids a Democrat's businesses with a legal warrant and find out he's a thief?"
"...good?"

As you know, this is my favorite Trump topic - his tax records and the releasing therein. I didn't care when this started out, in 2015 (what a fucking LOOOOOONG five years), but given that Trump's Crime Family has gone to extraordinary lengths to keep them hidden, I'm betting they paint a broad outline of criminal activity - especially the financial records.

I've been chomping at the bit to see them released to the public, knowing full well they won't - even if the prosecutors get them, they will be protected. But now, I wonder - if all the delays from Trump are going to backfire. Because I'm betting they will do just what you're suggesting - leaked to the world in mid-October, too late for Trump to do anything about. But if Trump had released them in 2017...who cares? Would we even remember them? He wouldn't have been impeached. He would still be in office, and they wouldn't be hanging over his head like Damocles Sword.

Getting them out to the public will be difficult. It is a separate felony for each act:
1. possessing federal tax returns you are unauthorized to possess (authorized persons defined by law)
2. releasing federal tax returns without authorization
3. publishing federal tax returns without authorization

All felonies. Each act.

So to do what we're suggesting, you'd have to send them out anonymously, and have them published on a website anonymously. All doable, but very risky - as whomever releases them will risk at least one felony.

This is a minor and probably unrelated issue, but, Deutche Bank is investigating one of their own who happened to do work for Trump and Kushner for years.

It will probably amount to coincidence -- Deutsche Bank is filled with criminals. But Deutsche Bank knows they are under permanent ongoing investigation for their admitted work laundering Russian money. If they have something of value to trade, they'll do it. And yes, NYState has collected settlements from them directly before -- it doesn't have to be a federal case.

The one and only time I have beaten you to a headline, but yeah, just sauce for the goose - no surprises, probably won't amount to any punishments, and confirms what we already factually know - that Trump's Crime Family has been at it for decades.

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@Breccia that email is the sweatiest shit I’ve seen from Trump yet.

Fuck yes - great capture @Breccia - doing god's good work.
(can we say that if we're agnostic? asking for a friend....)

[Xyonai]

It's horrific what he's doing to this country, but that specific EO will last about as long as it takes for Roberts to reach over and quash it. He will more than likely actively get it to SCOTUS review immediately, and then shove it right up Trump's ass. And that decision will be 9-0.

Still just awful Trump, das fuhrer, is doing this to the country. He's obviously terrified of what post-Resident life will be like for him. And his idiot fan base is following him right over the cliff.

See I don't even think it'll go that far. Trump has always been a Bark over Bite type of guy, and it's easier for him to screech about a problem existing then actually doing anything about it.

What I'm thinking he expected to happen, was that Navada would cower before his manly orange might and cease their transgressions against their Dear Leader. Nevermind that threatening legal action against people who slight him is what he always does, and never mind that it's unquestionably backfired or failed to work on anyone who wasn't already primed to assume the position for him.

[s_bushido]

[IMG]pathetic campaign email[/IMG]

I wonder if they realize that keeping up with the "make America great" and "getting back our to American way of life" stuff is basically an admission that these past four years have accomplished...nothing. Or worse than nothing, given the deaths and economic/social strife that has occurred on their watch.

[Xyonai]

So trump had an interview with Axios.

@ jonathanvswan: “Oh, you’re doing death as a proportion of cases. I’m talking about death as a proportion of population. That’s where the U.S. is really bad. Much worse than South Korea, Germany, etc.”

@ realdonaldtrump: “You can’t do that.”

Swan: “Why can’t I do that?”